Surfacing (Pewdieken)
by Treisia
Summary: Pewdie and the Late Night Crew are invited on board a cruise for Youtube gamers, and Pewdie asks Ken to accompany him. Spending so much time in close quarters with Pewdie causes some strange feelings in Ken regarding his friend, and they seem to go beyond just friendship. One-shot, some Snund in there too! (Beautiful cover art by Doodlepie !)


So I wrote something again for the first time in ages! This is a fanfic of my favorite ship: PewdieKen! For Doodlepie, as the best thanks I could do for all the amazing and adorable fanart she makes~ In this fic there's Ken, Pewdie, and a little bit of Late Night Crew. It's PewdieKen, but I added in some Snund too~!

Words: 5,000

Rating: Nothing smutty haha

I hope you like it! Sorry for any spelling, grammar, or sentence structure mistakes/ Also, Happy Holidays! ᒄ₍⁽ˆ⁰ˆ⁾₎ᒃ

* * *

The sound of the ocean gently lapping against the hull of the ship mingled with the noises of the film crew as they rushed about the deck setting up the cameras. The periodic bouncing rhythm of the waves was calming, and the faint smell of sea salt was pleasantly refreshing as it ruffled through Ken's beard. Smoothing the hair down absentmindedly, he made a mental note to trim it later. Leaning against the railing on the bow, Ken happily drank in the scene before him; the sunset cast a soft light onto the water, making the surface glow a warm orange.

He couldn't believe his luck in being invited here. Pewdie, along with a handful of other Let's Players including the entire Late night Crew, had been invited to record a 'vacation' video. Let the fans see their favorite youtubers relaxed and hanging out with each other, without the interruptions of a laggy stream or a slow connection. Cry had politely declined (as was expected) but had vigorously insisted that they tell him all about it once they got back to dry land and it's accompanying Wi-Fi. Felix had been worried about getting lonely since he didn't really know any of the other Youtubers that well, and had asked Ken to come and keep him company. Ken eagerly accepted the invitation of course; Who would turn down a chance to hang out with their friend on a free cruise? As Ken tried and failed to remember the last time he had taken a break from making videos, he noticed Felix walking over to enjoy the view as well. He budged over to make room for Felix to lean beside him, before turning his attention back to the setting sun. As it sank lower, the orange seemed to spread out into different colours; Pinks, yellows and reds now adorned the ocean surface, perfecting the atmosphere. Ken could almost feel his stress melting away as he leaned lightly against his friend's shoulder. Felix relaxed and let out a deep breath before turning to Ken and offering him a content smile.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" The blonde sighed, his accent slipping through more than usual due to his carefree state. Ken hummed gently in agreement, as he stepped back and lifted both of his muscled arms above his head to stretch out any tension gathered from hanging over the railing. The hem of his CTK T-shirt was pulled up by the stretch, and he realised that the air had cooled from the earlier heat to a more comfortable, hazy warmth. Feeling sleepy from all the traveling, Ken took a final brief glance at the stunning sight of the sun setting behind the horizon. He turned his gaze to Felix to say goodnight, but found himself momentarily frozen by the sight of his friend:

The last beams of sunlight reflected off his blonde hair, making it seem almost golden. His fair complexion worked perfectly with the lighting, bringing out the slight tan that the usually pale Swede had acquired during his short stay in America and highlighting his azure eyes. Ken stared in fascination as he thought about how expressive they were; Half closed in an almost sleepy expression, they still managed to shine with an undercurrent of happiness and contentment.  
Allowing his eyes to wander, Ken raked his gaze along the lithe body. His posture was at ease, and the American smiled at the height difference; he was almost a full 3 inches taller than Pewdie, and definitely more bulky in size. Generally happy with his appearance, although he admitted he could spend a bit more time at the gym, Ken didn't really give much thought to the physical aspect of people but after having the opportunity to admire him he had to admit; Felix was certainly attractive. Pretty, almost.

So caught up in his thoughts, he hardly noticed Felix turning around to look at him questioningly.  
"Bro? Ken, you okay? You're kind of staring.." Pewdie asked, shifting nervously under the intense look Ken was directing at him. Snapping back to reality with a jolt, the brunette ran his hands through his hair and shook his head to clear it of the odd musings. He flashed a wide reassuring grin at his friend, and reached out to flick a piece of hair away from his curious eyes.  
"Just got distracted by how pretty you are, Pewdie." He joked, laughing as he watched Felix's face heat up with a flush.  
"It's how I get all the ladies." He snorted, rifling through his pockets to find the cabin key while motioning for Ken to follow him back inside. Picking up his travel case and jogging to walk next to Felix, he frowned as he realised that nobody had told him where he would be sleeping.

Noticing the irritated look on the larger man's face, Felix guessed at the cause.  
"Since it wasn't planned for you to be here they don't have an extra room for you. It's okay though, you can stay in my cabin!" Felix beamed at the prospect of getting to spend so much time with his friend, and Ken couldn't help but share the joy.  
"Slumber party!" Ken declared, fist pumping and laughing. As they reached their assigned cabin, Pewdie patted down his pockets and pulled out the key-card. Entering and looking around excitedly, he remembered he had left his bag at the reception. Groaning, he turned to Ken and told him he'd be right back before hurrying out of the room.

Jogging along the corridors while hoping not to get lost, Felix cursed his forgetfulness under his breath. When he reached the reception desk, he saw two members of the Late Night Crew that he identified as Snake and Jund. He went to call out a greeting before stopping himself in surprise.

Snake had casually reached his arm around Jund's shoulders, and was whispering something that Felix couldn't quite make out into his ear. Jund turned red and shot a glare at the intimidating man, before tugging his bandana down over his eyes and pushing him away, adding a snappy 'you jerk' and pouting sulkily. Lifting the cloth back up his forehead, Snake smirked and tugged the scowling man towards him by the hips. "You know you love it." He cooed in a deep voice. Felix couldn't believe his eyes as the smaller man's scowl fell away and was replaced by a slight upturn of the lips, as he caught Snake off guard and pulled him into a passionate kiss.  
Felix immediately turned on his heel and marched back down the corridor. Stopping once he felt he had given them enough space to constitute as privacy, he decided to wait for a little bit before going back to get his bags. He felt a smile spread across his face; Seems like the shippers had got it spot on.

Back in the cabin, Ken inspected the room. It was nicer than he had expected, a soft red carpet with with dark brown mahogany walls, giving the cabin a homey atmosphere. The bathroom was rather small with just enough room for a sink, shower and toilet. Yawning tiredly, Ken wondered if Pewdie would mind him going to bed before he got back. After trudging over to the sink and brushing his teeth, he made use of the currently empty room to change into his PJ's; a white t-shirt and a pair of baggy shorts adorned with little cookie monsters.  
He opened the door to the bedroom, and stopped upon noticing there was only one bed. Huffing in annoyance, he wondered if Felix would object to sharing; the bed was quite large, and the sofa really didn't look very comfortable. Hearing the other enter the cabin while growling angry curse words at the apparently heavy suitcase, he held open the bedroom door and motioned for Felix to look.

"Only one bed?" The out of breath man questioned, before realisation dawned on his face. "Well, I suppose I _was_ supposed to be the only one here. Well, it's no big deal; We can share, or I can take the couch if you prefer..?"  
Shaking his head, Ken rejected the notion of either of them taking the couch. "Nope, I'm good with sharing." Turning to go lay down, Ken paused and smirked before adding "Just be careful, I'm pretty irresistible." He struck a mock pose as Pewdie giggled.  
"No promises!" He heard Felix shout from the other room, and he laughed to himself. He turned on the bedside lamp and flicked off the main light, before sighing as he lowered his surprisingly weary body onto the soft bed and pulled the covers over himself. Hearing the sink running and the sound of a bag being rummaged through, he guessed that they were both too tired to stay up.  
Quietly closing the door behind him, Pewdie, now clad in his boxers and and oversized black t-shirt, wriggled under the covers and settled next to Ken.

"Night Ken.." He yawned sleepily, smiling as he heard Ken mutter a tired 'G'night' in return. Snuggling tightly under the blanket and shivering at the chilly night air, it wasn't long before Felix drifted off to sleep.

-  
Ken awoke feeling groggy and overheated. Still disoriented and only half conscious, he turned his blurry vision to the circular cabin window. The darkness indicated that it was too early get up, and Ken grunted before attempting to roll over to return to his slumber. As he went to move, he was surprised to find another body pressed tightly against his; 'Well,' his barely awake mind supplied, 'that explains the heat.'

Gaining awareness, Ken fully took in his current situation; An arm wrapped around his hips, and a head of wild hair pressed tightly into his side. Pushing himself into a half sitting position on his elbows, he examined the Swedish man's sleeping face. Blank except for the tiniest upturn of pink lips, Felix looked younger than usual. It appeared that at some point in the night, he had slipped close to the center of the bed and eventually gravitated to the heat of another body. As he allowed their current positions to fully sink in, he felt his cheeks heat up with a vicious blush and he immediately tried to shuffle out of the grasp of his sleeping friend.  
The action only served to cause the other to tighten his hold on Ken's hips while murmuring something in Swedish, then return to his completely relaxed state.

Sighing in both defeat and exhaustion, Ken allowed himself one more attempt at moving away only to find it just as fruitless as the last. Shrugging to himself as he felt the tiredness caused by the early awakening and the cold from the air around him, he carefully laid on his side. Wrapping an arm around the Swede as he burrowed further into Ken's chest, he exhaled and peacefully returned to sleep.

Felix slowly opened his eyes, he registering how fantastic he felt. Normally he spent trips away from home frazzled and tired due to restless nights, but right now he felt as though he had slept for days. Unfortunately, the peace was shattered when he realised that was he was currently clinging to was not in fact, his pillow, but actually his close (and apparently soft) friend. Barely restraining a yelp he reared up. knocking the other man's heavy arm off his shoulders in the process and jolting him awake. In his hurry to put space between them, he got his legs tangled in the bedsheet and succeeded in falling over backwards off the bed, ending up sprawled out flat eagle on the ground.  
Sitting up and rubbing vigorously at his eyes, Ken tried to repress his chuckle at his friend's current less-than-comfortable predicament. "You okay down there Felix?" He jested, the humour evident in his tone. Hearing a grumbled 'No' in response, he swung his legs off the bed and held out his hand to help Felix up. He grudgingly took the hand while muttering some choice Swedish curse words under his breath and willing the flush to fade from his cheeks.

Ken stretched and yawned, suggesting that they go get something to eat from the kitchen. Still pouting, Felix nodded in agreement and murmured something about going to shower. Feeling a little apologetic, Ken quickly grabbed his arm. As Felix turned to face him, he opened his arms in invitation.  
"Sorry for laughing, it's just that was one hell of a wake-up call! Peace-hug?" He offered, shaking his arms a little. The now calm Pewdie couldn't help but laugh, happily accepting the apology. Taking advantage of the big size difference, Ken wrapped his arms around the slimmer man in a massive bear hug and lifted him up off the ground.  
Almost knocked off his feet by the force when released, and a little short on oxygen from the squeezing, Felix laughed whole-heartedly.  
"I appreciate the hug, but was a full on cuddle really needed?" He rasped, fixing his disheveled PJ's and trying to catch his breath.  
"You didn't seem to mind cuddling me last night!" Ken teased, waggling his eyebrows as the younger man blushed yet again; Ken found that he rather liked the look on Felix, and he hoped that the current frequency of it's appearance would not waver.

In a lighter mood, they both headed into the other room. Pewdie went to dig through his bag for a towel and stated that he was going to shower. Ken nodded and looked around for his own bag. Pulling out his toothbrush and grabbing his shaver as an afterthought, he knocked on the bathroom door. Hearing a muffled 'Come in!' over the sound of running water, he opened the door and made his way over to the sink. Rubbing away the steam, not particularly caring if it left smudges, he went about brushing his teeth. Rinsing his mouth and reaching for his shaver, he began to tame the mass of hair on his chin.  
As Felix finished rinsing the shampoo out of his hair, he quickly flicked his fingers through it and rubbed it with the towel. Tying the towel around his waist, he stepped out of the shower. Seeing Ken intermittently wiping at the mirror with a look of annoyance on his face he chuckled and walked over to him.  
"Sorry for the steam, I prefer hot showers." He said sheepishly. An idea popped into his head, and he reached for the shaver. Quirking an eyebrow at him, Ken cautiously handed it over. "Be careful with that," he warned, "if you mess this up I'll make sure to return the favor to those blonde locks of yours!"  
Laughing, Felix waved away the threat and went to work on Ken's curly brown beard. While he worked diligently, Ken let his gaze once again sweep over the form in front of him. While he looked almost skinny in his clothes, with them off it was easy to see the slight muscles that graced his abdomen and chest. They were woven into the structure of his torso, closer to those of a swimmer or an athlete rather than a bodybuilder. His skin looked soft, and Ken had to restrain the sudden urge to reach out and touch it. Dragging himself out of his thoughts before they got away from him, he went back to focusing on staying still while Felix finished

.  
Trimming it evenly, and being very careful around the neck, Pewdie deftly maneuvered the shaver and clicked it off when he felt he had removed a moderate amount of scruff. Feeling the shape with his hands, Ken grinned in approval. "You did a a good job buddy, luckily for you!" Puffing out his chest in pride, Felix touched his own far shorter scruff. "I've had at least a little practise." He pointed out. Ken scoffed at the shadow of a beard Pewdie claimed to possess. Turning on the tap and swirling the water around the sink to clean away any hairs, the American wondered whether his friend's beard would come through blonde and smiled to himself at the thought.

Changing into their signature Brofist and Toasty shirts, they headed down to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat before starting their day of filming.  
-

Ken was utterly exhausted. Wandering out to the hem of the ship, he leaned against the railings and stared out across the ocean. The sun was beginning it's descent, and Ken felt his cocoa curls once again being gently brushed back by the breeze. While the scene was closely reminiscent of the last day he had spent aboard, the tired man simply couldn't enjoy it as much. Groaning quietly and dropping his head into his hands, he ran back over the events of the day in his head.

\/  
The morning had started out great, and Ken was eager to start filming. As he and the other Youtube gamers gathered into the lobby of the ship, he pulled on his bear hat and grinned over at Felix who flashed a wide smile in return.

They had spent ages filming; Q&A, multiplayer, co-ops, karaoke, and finally a round of Truth or Dare to finish it off. It was about 10 minutes into the game when the cause of Ken's current unpleasant mood had occurred.

The subject of shipping had been brought up. Red was teasing Snake and Jund, reveling in the glare Scott was directing at her as his face darkened and Snake smirked, Red turned to Ken.  
"Hey, isn't PewdieKen a pretty popular thing nowadays?" She prompted, looking at the two. Pewdie, who had was smiling knowingly at Scott and Snake, whipped around to face her. "W-well.." He spluttered, turning a colour dark enough to challenge Scotts own rosey palette. Ken only laughed, turning to his friend and winking.  
"Looks like they're onto us Pewds!" He drawled, wrapping an arm around Pewdie's now stiff shoulders. Felix relaxed and laughed at the absurdity of the situation.  
"It's the ship that sails itself." He quoted, allowing himself to calm down.

The game had continued on, with the subject never being entirely dropped. Felix was now completely at ease, joining in confidently and even slipping in the occasional dirty joke. Eventually, they reached the point that all games of Truth or Dare seem to somehow reach; a Dare to kiss someone, or a Truth about who you like. After Scott had skittishly kissed Russ on his forehead, much to the displeasure of the pissed looking Snake, he declared that he would absolutely **not** allow himself to be the only one having to do it.  
"Ken! Truth or dare?" Said Snund impatiently . Thinking back over some of the utterly embarrassing truths that had been demanded this evening, Ken decided a dare would be safer. "I dare you to kiss Pewds on the lips. I will REFUSE to be the only one catering to the shippers today!" he decreed, crossing his arms stubbornly.

Ken shifted towards Pewdie while doing his best to keep the look of uncertainty off his face. Felix, on the other hand, seemed perfectly comfortable as he wiggled his eyebrows at Ken. "Well Mr Kenneth, it seems the fans have been waiting." He purred, miming applying lipstick before shuffling over to Ken and looking at him expectantly. The brunette wasn't sure why he felt so nervous; Struggling to push the odd feelings down and get back into the cheerful mood, he stuttered out a 'y-yeah' and took a deep breath.

It was only a short thing. A quick press of the lips, no more than a few seconds. Making sure to act it up, Felix placed his hands onto either side of the bearded face and curled his fingers through the soft hair. Their eyes had automatically fallen closed upon contact, and Ken felt far too aware of all the sensations coursing through him. Pewdie's lips were soft but firm, and slightly warmer than his due to the blush that had crept across the blonde's cheeks at the last moment. The scent of Pewdie's undeniably girly strawberry shampoo became subtly present due to their proximity, only adding to the sensory overload the flustered American was experiencing. Ken was reminded of the time he had stage-kissed Pewdie in a vlog, to give the fans a little bit of service. His hand had been between them of course, and Pewdie had dizzily stumbled back once released, blushing madly and trying to hide it behind his hands.  
But this time there was not hand between them, and Ken felt almost overwhelmed by the electrifying feeling that buzzed through him.

Felix was first to pull away, giggling and looking a little unsteady. Ken was speechless for a moment, then the tidal wave of confused and strong emotions swept over him and he had never been so grateful for the beard obscuring most of his now crimson cheeks. Whooping and clapping, the surrounding group seemed oblivious to the inner turmoil Ken was experiencing. Releasing the gust of air he didn't know he had trapped in his lungs, Ken tried to calm himself but the emotions wouldn't leave.

Everyone had got tired soon after, and the dropping sun had confirmed that it was time to call it a day.  
Splitting up to return their individual cabins, although Scott pulling Snake off in the direction of his own was not missed, everybody said goodbye and wandered off. Ken was still shaken; he couldn't deny that, over the past few days, he had developed feelings that may go beyond the 'friend' or even 'best friend' barriers. Or.. were they just surfacing? Thinking back, Ken could remember that a far more subdued form of the warmth that had exploded in his chest during the dare had always been present when the Swedish man had visited him in LA.

/\

Back to his current position leaning over the rails of the ship, he felt almost miserable. He wasn't stupid; He knew what this feeling was, and he was almost certain Pewdie wouldn't return the sentiment. He jumped as he felt a firm hand clap onto his shoulder. Snake stood behind him.  
"Don't sneak up on people like that.." Ken grumbled, straightening his posture. Snake chuckled, muttered an apology and turned to face the view.  
"I know what's going on between you and Felix." He stated calmly. Ken's eyes shot wide open and he spun around to face Snake with a look of horror on his face.  
"Relax Ken, I'm not going to tell him." He rolled his eyes and continued, "although he's probably already realised given the way you were staring at him all evening.."  
Ken wished he could just melt into a puddle, and was about to beg for Snake to drop it when the muscular men held up a finger to silence him.  
"But... he was so spaced out after that kiss that he may have missed the staring.."  
Tilting his head in confusion, Ken tried not to sound too stupid or hopeful as he coughed out a questioning 'what'.  
Hearing Jund calling for him, Snake sauntered back to the doorway and paused before stepping in;  
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, and loving someone deeply gives you courage."

As Jund appeared and pulled him through the doorway, Ken was left dumbfounded. He allowed the words to filter through his brain.  
Looking back up to the now gloriously coloured waves, he forced himself to steel with his decision; He would confess to Felix, and hope with all his might that, even if rejected, they could stay friends. The thought of losing his gaming buddy as well as any other relationship he might of had with him clenched a cold hand of dread around his heart, but he refused to give in.  
He had been fighting with himself over how to bring it up for about 15 minutes when he heard the door swing open behind him. He tensed up; this was it. Felix almost skipped over to the railing, leaning against Ken's arm just as he had yesterday. Ken knew he had to do it, but he also knew that messing it up would reduce his chances of success significantly. He resigned himself to just standing with him for a while, enjoying what may be the last non-awkward moments of their friendship.

They stood together, watching the sun nearing it's final stretch. Scared stiff of rejection, but equally terrified of allowing his friend return to his home half way across the world in Sweden, he knew it was now or never.

"Felix, there's- I just.. Have something I wanted to talk to you about." He stammered, cursing the tremble in his voice. Felix turned to face him, looking as relaxed and beautiful as always. Now even more flustered by the adorable Swede, he tried to clear his mind and control the slight shake in his hands. Felix noticed Ken's discomfort, and the happiness immediately fell from his face to be replaced by concern.  
"Bro, are you okay? You look.." Trailing off, his concern turned to panic when Ken reached out and gripped his shoulders.

"Ken?! What's wrong? If you're going to be seasick, you should-"  
"I like you."

Pewdie scrunched up his face in confusion. "Yeah Ken, I like you too but what's wrong?". Sighing agitatedly, Ken tried again.  
"No Felix, I mean.. I more than like you. More than friend like. As in, 'I want to kiss the heck out of him' like." Ken released a shuddering breath, hoping he had gotten his point across.  
Felix hadn't responded. His mouth had opened slightly, in a look of surprise that would have been comical at any other time but right now it just caused Ken's hopes to sink right into his shoes. Already fearing the worst, Ken let his arms drop from Pewdie's shoulders. After the immediate crash of depressing emotions had hit home, he raced to find someway to dismiss his confession or excuse it as a joke. As he desperately considered pretending to be drunk, despite there be no alcohol aboard to his knowledge, he heard what sounded like a wheeze from Felix. His head shot up and he stared into the cyan eyes, waiting for the inevitable 'what the fuck' and perhaps even some insults.

"...ou too."  
Ken still couldn't quite hear him. He was whispering, his lips seeming to move without forming words.  
"I.. like.. you too. Ken, I like you too."  
Ken froze in utter disbelief. Having already taken Pewdie's reaction as rejection, his mind seemed unable to process the words.  
"In a.." Felix continued in a faint voice, reaching out his hands for Ken's shoulders this time, "in a 'I want to kiss him so much' way, not a 'he's my bro' way."

The next few moments happened very quickly. Feeling the greatest sense of relief he had ever known flood his system, Ken lunged forward and pulled the stunned blonde into a vice like hug. Laughing, Felix happily returned the hug, wrapping his arms around Ken and resting his head in the crook on his neck. Pulling back a bit, they stared happily into each other's eyes.

"Hehe... What was that you said about kissing me?" Ken urged in a deep voice. Felix put all his other blushes to shame with a deep crimson adorning his face and even spreading down to his neck.

He leaned in slowly, both pausing to feel the other's shallow breath ghosting over their lips, before closing the gap.

Wrapping his arms securely around the slighter man, Ken had never felt so happy. His love and adoration Felix skyrocketed, and he felt coils of joys roll through his body. Felix felt the rest if the world slip to the back of his mind as he focused fully on passionately returning the kiss, not bothered by the slight tickle of beard. Dropping his hands to the slim waist, Ken softly brushed his fingers against the skin of his hips. Felix shivered and pressed himself closer against Ken, twirling his fingers into the soft chocolate curls.

As he pulled back, Ken couldn't resist placing just one more chaste kiss to Felix's lips. Felix managed to maintain eye contact for a few moments before the shyness took over, and he pressed his face into Ken's neck. Ken slowly curled his fingers through the blonde hair, pressed a kiss to the top of his head and stepped back. Ken turned Felix around and embraced him so that they were both facing the sun, where it was sinking down behind the seemingly endless ocean.

Their hands dropped, fingers intertwining. Ken circled his arms lovingly around Felix, who relaxed back against his chest.

They watched the sun setting together, too comfortable to move until the moon shone down upon the deck and the first stars appeared from behind the clouds. They shared one more kiss before heading back inside, fingers still tightly interlocked.

~ The End


End file.
